Thursday, October 7, 2010

Weightlifting: Hafifi's win exceeds target

WEIGHTLIFTING'S medal blitz continued at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium yesterday as Mohd Hafifi Mansor delivered the men's 69kg bronze, bringing the sport's personal haul to five medals. The bronze also meant that weightlifting have exceeded their target of four medals and Hafifi was glad to be the one who delivered the fifth.

Hafifi lifted a total 306kg -- 137kg in the snatch and 169kg in the clean and jerk -- to ensure Malaysia finished with a medal for the third day running.

It also meant he bettered the national record of 300kg held by Hidayat Hamidon but Hafifi, 20, wasn't overly satisfied with his achievement.
"I was targetting the silver but let nerves take control. This is my first major tournament and that was the reason why I felt nervous. However, I am happy to have won the bronze though I let the silver slip away," said Hafifi.

India's Ravi Kumar Katulu was a runaway winner, lifting a total 321 for the gold while Sri Lanka's Chinthana Geetal Vidanage lifted 308kg for the silver